


Can I Trust You?

by MiniNoire



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, Don't Like Don't Read, Feels, Gen, High on sodium, Hurt No Comfort, Post-Episode: s03 Miracle Queen (The Battle of the Miraculous Part 2), Salt, Saltinette, Trust Issues, vent fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:48:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26858467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiniNoire/pseuds/MiniNoire
Summary: She was strong, she was brave, she was Marinette! She was Ladybug and the Guardian of the Miraculous.But even brave people have their moment of weakness. Even they can shatter completely like fragile glass.And no matter how brave you are, sometimes life can force you to take steps that are a bit too extreme.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 44
Kudos: 157
Collections: October 2020 - Dark





	Can I Trust You?

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to MiaBrown and KatieChat for beta reading!

_Trust. Such a simple 5 letter word. And we use it so often, we often forget its true meaning, don’t we? It’s so simple to say “I trust you” to anyone you can call a friend, a relative, a well-wisher. And it is so easy to place our trust in anyone we admire or love, right?_

_But do we ever pause to think about what would happen if the trust gets broken?_

* * *

“I'm good friends with the best manga publisher in Japan, you know. I can talk to them about your comic book project if you like.”

Marinette listened to the conversation between Lila and Nathaniel with a contempt expression. “She's such a liar!”

“You gotta stop obsessing over her, Marinette,” Alya stated in a bored tone.

The ravenette wanted to argue, but they were interrupted by Ms. Bustier’s announcement about their test results. The ones Marinette had been anxious about, and why wouldn’t she be? She had studied so well and hoped to get good grades. However, when Ms. Bustier called her to the front and picked out the answer key from her bag, Marinette was just as shocked as her classmates

“Someone must've planted that piece of paper in my bag!” she defended herself.

“But you've answered all of the questions correctly,” Ms. Bustier replied, a frown on her face.

She did? Well that meant she had studied well. Wasn’t that a good thing?

Apparently not, because it only strengthened Ms. Bustier’s belief in the false claim. And Lila’s words just added fuel to fire.

Speaking of Lila, Marinette was dead-sure that the Rossi girl was the one who had framed her. But of course, given how much faith everyone had in Lila, they didn’t believe Marinette’s claims.

Though, some of her classmates rose to her defense, notably Alya, Adrien and Rose.

“Miss Bustier, Marinette always scores high on your tests.”

“Excuse me, Miss Bustier, but everyone here knows it isn't like Marinette to cheat.”

“It doesn't make sense!”

Well, their support sure was a small comfort in her agony.

Little did she know that even that would be short-lived.

* * *

_Do we ever think about the people on whom we placed our trust in? Do we ever dream in the wildest of our dreams about what would happen, lest the trust be shattered to pieces? And what if… what if that is done by people who you think are the closest to you?_

_Do we ever pause to think if we could bear the brunt of that betrayal, ever?_

* * *

“My Grandma's pendant!”

Marinette felt the ground shift beneath her feet as Lila hugged the fox necklace to herself. In the background, Marinette heard her mother gasp as she hid herself in her father’s tall frame. Marinette felt the entire room staring at her in shock and disgust. But she wasn’t going to go down without a fight.

“She's making up this whole thing! It wasn't me! I didn't do anything, I swear!”

Her Maman’s sobs broke her heart. Her Papa’s gaze mixed with pity and slight disapproval made her nauseous.

Did her parents trust her that little?

She could feel her friends giving her pitied looks. But most of them had disapproval and contempt in their gazes too. Negative emotions that cut through her strangled heart like a knife through melted butter.

Did her friends have that little faith in her? 

Mr. Damocles’ angered look, Ms. Bustier’s disapproving stare, Adrien’s sorry look -- why were they all not doing anything to support her?

“You know Lila's lying, don't you, Adrien?”

As if that flipped a switch within him, Adrien’s expression hardened. “Mr. Damocles, I don't think--”

The Principal interrupted him by raising his hand, before glaring at Marinette. “Marinette Dupain-Cheng, you are expelled from this school!”

She was what?! 

* * *

_It’s difficult to imagine something like that happening, but then again, reality is stranger than fiction, isn’t it? Like, you expect your closest friends to support you through and through, but then life decides to pluck you from your comfort pillow of roses and throws you on the thorns of reality, causing you to plunge deep into despair._

* * *

Marinette sat on her deck chair, her expression one of dejection as she stared at her phone’s screen. Alya was rambling on the other end of the phone.

“So let's recap, right. You're accused of stealing the answers to the mock exam. Evidence 1: The paper with the answers was found in your school bag. You're also accused of pushing Lila down the stairs. No one witnessed the actual incident, but everyone did see Lila at the bottom of the staircase. You're also accused of stealing Lila's necklace, which was, Evidence 2, found inside your locker. And finally, you have a motive. I know for a fact that you've hated Lila from Day 1 because she hangs around Adrien.”

Was it alright to feel as if she had been stabbed in the back? Or better phrased, was it alright to be numb to the feeling of being stabbed in the back? Was it backstabbing in the first place?

Marinette resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “I'm so glad I called you. Thanks for your support.”

On the other end of the phone, Alya looked dejected. “You're my best friend, Marinette. I totally believe you, but the evidence is stacked against you. The good thing is, the world's greatest reporters always seek the truth, so I'm gonna prove your innocence.”

Well, maybe it wasn’t actually backstabbing. It was just Alya being confused by the evidence, right?

Then why did a small part of her feel like Alya had just punched her in the gut? After all, if she had really meant to help, she would have stood up for her right when Mr. Damocles had decided to expel her, right? Was Alya just doing the honorary best friend chores now for her own selfish interests to not lose Marinette as a friend?

Shoving the negative feelings aside, Marinette continued her conversation with her best friend, until her parents called her downstairs.

Her mom gave her a concerned gaze. “Now listen, honey, we love you but this whole thing has gotten very complicated. And until we've found a new school for you, we've decided that you should help us with the bakery.”

Wait, they were joking, right?

“But I'm telling you, I didn't do anything! If I have spent all my time in here, how am I going to be able to prove that I'm innocent?” Marinette countered, confused at her parent’s decision.

They didn’t relent. “It's fun here at the bakery. You'll see,” her dad said, handing her an apron which she took begrudgingly.

* * *

_But that’s not all, ‘cause somewhere within, you still hold onto hope. That slight hope and expectation that everything will be alright, that things will fall back in place, that things would be just the way they were earlier._

_But then again, expectations merely lead to suffering._

* * *

“Always make sure you get your right angles there. Then you fold the pastry, folded toward first, about two-thirds of the way.”

Marinette appreciated the baking lesson, she really did. She knew her parents meant well. But seriously, how could they expect her to focus on something entirely different when she had been wrongly accused of something she could never do? Why were they diluting the situation and not actually trying to deny the accusations that had been placed upon her?

Her phone rang, gaining her attention. She glanced over to find Alya’s caller ID flashing on the screen. She looked at her Dad, seeking permission. “Can I please answer?”

Her dad sighed before walking to the phone and declining the call. “We're not done with our flaky pastry yet.”

Marinette couldn’t believe her father. Did he just… give up on her?

* * *

_“Okay, so here's the skinny on my investigation so far. No fingerprints, no evidence. Whoever did this was very thorough. I'm sorry. We'll be in touch.”_

She had managed to get a hold on the voice call the moment she had transformed. And she knew Alya had tried her best. But then why did her heart hurt so much at hearing her apology? Why did she feel like Alya had just investigated for the namesake and had actually not put any heart to the thing? 

Was it normal for her to feel that way? Were her feelings justified?

* * *

“And because of this rare disease, sometimes I can't control things I say. I'm really sorry, Marinette.”

Lies. Lies. They were all lies. She knew that from within.

But of course Mr. Damocles didn’t. And even her parents were convinced by Lila’s tales. Like, were they seriously going to believe someone who had been the reason for the expulsion of their daughter not even a few hours ago?

The Principal wiped his nose on a handkerchief, trying to get his emotions under control. He had been moved by Lila’s tales, how beautiful. “Thank you for your confession, Lila. It's very moving. Marinette, you will of course be allowed back in the school tomorrow.”

Had it been another reason, Marinette would have happily accepted the offer. But right now, Marinette was seething. No scratch that, she was practically fuming.

“I don’t understand this.”

The gasps of the people in the room were an indication that Marinette had said her words out loud. Oh well. 

“Pardon me Mr. Damocles, but I seriously don’t understand the basis of your decisions. But I refuse to be the ‘Welcome’ doormat and from this instant only, I am going to put my foot down and speak my mind for once!”

The Principal glared at her. “Ms. Dupain Cheng--”

“No, I’m not going to be silenced. Lila accuses me of stuff, shows evidence against me that could very well have been placed there by someone else, and you refuse to listen to my side of the story and simply expel me?! And then, she comes in here a few hours later, apologises for all the confusion she caused thanks to a rare lying disease of hers, and you simply agree and take me back in?”

“Tell me Mr. Damocles, had I accused Lila of actually framing me, would you have believed me? Oh wait!” Marinette scoffed in disgust. “I actually did accuse her, but you refused to listen to me! What am I to you, sir? A silent Marionette who can simply move the way you want her to?”

She could feel her father’s stern grip on her shoulder, but she shrugged it off, taking a step towards the Principal.

“Not to mention the fact that there was no medical prescription issued in the first place about the said lying disease. What if she lied about meeting all those famous celebrities? What if she lied about being to Achu when she was on that extended leave of hers?” She pointed a shaky finger to Lila, her voice growing higher in pitch with every statement she spoke. “Everyone bothered to check the evidence against me, did anyone bother to check their sources about _her_?”

Lila whimpered. “Marinette, I’ve just tried to be your frie--”

“ ** _OH SHUT UP!_ **” Marinette couldn’t help the anger that coursed within her. “Shut up with all that crappy ‘I tried to be your friend’ bullshit! For you and I both know that you had the audacity to threaten me in the bathroom when I called you out on your lies! But hey, you are now gonna chalk it up to some ‘rare attention-seeking’ syndrome of yours, aren’t you? I know you for who you actually are -- a calculating, cunning lia--”

“Okay that’s ENOUGH!” Principal Damocles yelled, slamming his hand atop the desk. Marinette jumped a bit at the interruption and that was when she actually took note of her racing heartbeat.

Inhale. Exhale.

Calm down your emotions before an akuma appears.

“I won’t tolerate any drama from you henceforth Ms. Dupain Cheng, especially not in my office!”

Something within Marinette snapped, and she knew she had to get out of the room. Giving one last scathing glance to the people there, she dashed out of the room, the door slamming shut behind her.

* * *

_Somehow, trust once shaken gets weakened very quickly. Like, internally you know that the other person doesn’t mean to hurt you, but anything they say, anything they do makes you think that they are actually not supporting you. And the feeling of isolation.... It’s like someone is holding you in a chokehold, slowly cutting the air supply off. Or maybe like someone is pushing your head into the water and preventing you from resurfacing. You want to scream and flail and thrash about, but at the same time, you cannot. Because a part of you refuses to accept the naked reality that lies in front of you._

_In a nutshell, it just makes you… numb._

* * *

Marinette stared at her phone blankly, reading through the messages that sat there in the girl group chat.

(Alya) “What you said to Lila wasn’t great, girl.”

(Alix) “Not cool, not at all.”

(Juleka) “Not good.”

(Mylene)“Maybe you should try to apologise?”

(Rose)“Yes! Apologies are the best Marinette! I’m sure Lila didn’t mean to harm you!”

She wanted to laugh at the irony of the last message as well as cry at the gullible nature of her friends. She opted for a choked, teary half-laugh instead.

She turned her attention back to the news feed. Specifically the latest photoshoot pictures of Gabriel that featured Adrien. And Lila.

_“As long as you and I both know the truth, does it really matter?”_

Did the ‘it’ refer to her feelings? Because then the answer was ‘yes’. Her feelings did matter. And it hurt her to see the only person who knew the full truth siding with her enemy.

Had Adrien even cared about her feelings? She did not want to even think about that.

Throwing her phone to the side, Marinette clutched her pillow to her chest and snuggled in her bed. Tikki flitted by her head but Marinette turned her back to the kwami, wiping at her eyes furiously. 

The situation was a small one, it could have happened to anyone. Moreover, she was strong, she was brave, she was Marinette. She wasn’t going to cry over such a small thing like this -- it didn’t affect her in the slightest.

Though that didn’t explain her damp pillow.

Marinette simply wanted to forget about the day, to curl into herself and to sleep. Sleep was the place where there were rainbows and unicorns and pastries and unbreakable friendships. Sleep was the place where there were warm hugs and sweet kisses. Sleep was the place where knights in shining armor saved their princesses.

But she was scared of sleep as well.

For sleep was also the place where nightmares came to rule. And this time, she was afraid there was no knight to protect her from those malicious thoughts.

* * *

_And yet, you hold onto the weak sliver of hope, that everything would be alright. Without knowing that this hope is what would be the cause of your downfall._

_Trust is the foundation of relationships, the cement between all strong affiliations. But when the foundation gets weak, any earthquake can easily cause the building to fall. And the same is the case with trusts and relationships._

_But you know where the real difference lies?_

_With buildings, you can repair the foundations, you can save the buildings. But once trust is shattered, it is extremely hard to repair and rebuild upon. Most of the time, the relationship…. It just falls._

_No matter how much you try to save it._

* * *

Marinette was at her breaking point. She couldn’t do it. Not anymore.

Pink light flashed from the top of the Eiffel Tower, leaving Marinette standing where Ladybug once had been. The egg-shaped polka-dotted Miraculous box in her hand remained unchanged, though. And the piece of paper in her hand. And so did the tear trails that ran down her cheeks.

She was a mere teenager, a baker’s girl who wanted to have a normal life. She had never asked for the responsibility of an entire city to be thrown upon her shoulders. But then again, she had come to love her duty. Ladybug was a part of her, a small missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle called Marinette. And being Ladybug made her feel whole and complete.

She had always been selfless, never asked for anything. All she had wanted was a healthy relation with her friends, family and acquaintances. 

But a relationship being healthy implied having trust in each other, didn’t it? 

And trust was something her relationships greatly lacked.

For everyone somehow believed the new girl instead of the one they had known for perhaps all their lives. Everyone was enraptured by the tales the Rossi girl spun in the thread that shimmered gold but were cheap metal. No one came to Marinette’s rescue when she needed them the most.

But she smiled through it all, without any complaints, without any tears. Because she was strong, she was brave, she was Marinette.

Everything on the outside might seem good and fine, but inside, the building of relationships had finally shattered. And she only had Tikki left as the true friend she could properly talk to, for Chat didn't know her identity and Master Fu… Master Fu wasn’t in the picture.

It was her shoulders that the responsibility lay on. Of an entire city, of a collection on magical jewelry that had the power to change the world. And she couldn’t fall prey to her negative emotions.

But the pressures of superheroing and teen life combined with the recently shattered trust in all of her relationships now has made her a perfect prey for Hawkmoth. And no matter how much she tried, the camel’s back had finally been broken. Especially with her totally failed relationship with Adrien Agreste.

With blurry eyes, Marinette messaged the most recent contact on her phone. 

_Please come to pick me up at the Eiffel Tower. I will be waiting._

It was a miracle she had managed to type coherently.

Tikki looked at her with concern, silently asking her if she was sure about her decision. As she looked at the Parisian skyline that lay in front of her, Marinette realised that she actually wasn’t.

There was so much to lose, and so little to gain. She glanced down, her mind dizzy at noting the height she was standing on. Everything seemed so dark yet so tempting and she wanted to back off. To forgive them all and...

No. She had already made her decision and she had to abide by it. If she was going to crush any hearts, if she was going to make them feel even a shade of what she had actually felt, maybe… maybe it would be worth it.

With a steeled heart, she looked at her kwami and nodded.

It was time to take the extreme step. No backing away now. Not for her sanity.

* * *

_If you’re reading this letter, you know what transpired. And you know my identity as well. And trust me, I tried hard, kitty. I really tried hard. To forgive them all and move on._

_But then again, we need to forget to forgive, right?_

_With my parents’ disappointment, my friends’ deserting, and Adrien’s mixed signals… I didn’t know whom I could trust. I only had a few people left in my life -- Tikki, you, and… thankfully, Luka. But then again, one is a Goddess, and the rest… I couldn’t tell you guys about both sides of my life, right?_

_(By the way, Luka might be there to pick me up after you find me. He’s the one I trust the most in my civilian life, after you of course.)_

_I couldn’t do this, and I’m sorry to place this burden on you, mon chaton. I’m sorry to make you the Guardian. I never said this, but you are the most purr-fect friend I could ever ask for, and I hope we would hit it off right away in the new life as well! Who knows, maybe I would start liking your puns too!_

_Just… just ignore the blotchy ink that’s here, okay? I kind of spilled water on this letter and didn’t want to write it all over again. (Though a part of me says that you won’t buy my lie, and I am not opposed to it.)_

_I am afraid to do this, to be a blank slate and do this all over again. And I’m more scared to ask you what I’m going to ask of you right now Chat. Cause it is going to be hard on you and... with what all has happened over these past months, I cannot have faith in anyone anymore… but I still need to ask._

* * *

“Where am I? Who are you, kind sir? That’s a fancy black box you have. The green accents are really pretty! And wait... why are you crying?”

Chat furiously wiped at the tears that had trailed down his cheeks, giving the girl in front of him a watery smile. Now that he knew, he could see it -- the bluebell eyes, the confused pout, the concern… It was so Ladybug and so Marinette at the same time. He really wanted to bang his head on the Tower, to curse the hell out of himself for his idiocy and stupidity.

But right now Marinette needed him.

Giving her a watery smile, he stretched his hand out towards her, helping her to stand up. “I’m Chat Noir, one of the Parisian superheroes, little lady. I was strolling around and saw you passed out here. Apparently you hit your head hard or something. Are you alright?”

“I-I am fine. Thanks for asking. Though I still don’t remember why I am here, I am supposed to be at school right now,” Marinette replied, her frown showing her confusion.

“I guess it might be a slight memory loss, but don’t worry. We can sort that out, right?”

“I-I guess. Though I would really like to get down, if you don’t mind,” she admitted, a cute blush on her face.

Smiling, Chat stretched out his hand as he extended his baton. She looked bewildered, glancing from his face to his hand and back.

“You-we… are we going down on that pole? Can I trust you for its safety, kitty?”

* * *

_Please find a new Ladybug for yourself. Please._

_Can I trust you on this, kitty?_

* * *

“Always, Milady. Always.”

**Author's Note:**

> Story also shared on my [Main tumblr](https://mininoire.tumblr.com/) and [Writing Tumblr](https://noirewrites.tumblr.com/).
> 
> If you are looking for a friendly MLB community to discuss your ideas, plots or share views regarding the show, or to simply be a part of a MLB server, join the [Miraculous Fanworks Discord server](https://discord.gg/mlfanworks) today!


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